AIG, Taser Int'l, Red Hat and more

Advancers

Bakers Footwear Group Inc.
BKRS
plans to accelerate store openings in 2005 to 35 to 40 stores from its previous target of from 25 to 30 stores. Bakers will also accelerate its store remodelings. The St. Louis-based company also said that it has raised $8.8 million through a private placement. The stock rose 2%

Cymer Inc.
CYMI
was upgraded to overweight from neutral at J.P. Morgan, where the broker expressed increased confidence that the second quarter would represent the beginning of the next cycle from a revenue perspective. The shares rose 1%. See The Ratings Game.

Fortune Brands Inc.
FO, -1.52%
to outperform from neutral at CS First Boston, which cited accelerating demand in the home products segment, better than expected sales growth in spirits and wine and an attractive valuation. Analyst Ivy Zelman told clients in a note that demand in the kitchen and bath area increased in the double-digit range in March. Additionally, the analyst raised her price target on the Lincolnshire, Ill. consumer goods conglomerate to $90 from $87. The stock added 2%.

Humphrey Hospitality Trust, Inc.
HUMP
said it has raised it dividend by 20% to 6 cents a share. The dividend payment will be distributed on May 2 to shareholders of record Apr. 15. Shares gained 1%.

UBS upgraded railroad Kansas City Southern
KSU, +1.14%
to buy from neutral, citing more bullish margin forecasts. The broker told clients that KSC Railroad posted a record margin in the fourth quarter and carries strong momentum and a new coal contract into 2005. Shares climbed 3%.

JMP Securities upped infrastructure software provider Novell, Inc.
NOVL
to market perform from underperform, citing improving sales productivity and a re-emergence of growth in Linux and identity management solutions. The broker told clients that although the April quarter will likely reflect the company's continued transitional sales process and new product rollouts, it believes it can likely achieve the broker's estimates and show tangible momentum during the next several months. Shares added 2%.

MCI Inc.
MCIP
said it would re-engage with Qwest Communications International
Q, +0.10%
to review Qwest's new $8.9 billion bid to acquire the company. MCI confirmed that it has received a waiver from Verizon Communications
VZ, -0.51%
enabling it to engage in discussions with Qwest at any time until the date of the MCI shareholder vote on the proposed Verizon transaction. That date has not yet been set. Verizon has bid $7.6 billion for Qwest. Qwest shares fell 1% while MCI gained 1% and Verizon lost almost 1%. See full story.

PalmSource
PSRC
said it swung to a third-quarter loss and sales fell short of expectations, however, adjusted earnings were in line with the 4 cents a share analysts had expected. The stock added 8%. See full story.

PSS World Medical, Inc.
PSSI, +34.55%
lifted its 2005 earnings estimate to 60 cents a share, up from a previous forecast of a range of 57 cents to 59 cents a share. The company, which distributes medical products to physicians and elder care providers, said the forecast includes an exceptional tax gain of 9 cents a share. Shares rose 7%.

Red Hat Inc.
RHAT
reported earnings that more than doubled, meeting analysts' estimates. The company also expanded its stock buyback program. Shares moved up 11%. See full story.

Technology Flavors & Fragrances Inc.
TFF, +0.00%
agreed to be acquired by FFG Industries Inc. for $1.55 a share in cash. The deal is contingent upon 90% of Technology Flavors & Fragrances shareholders tendering their stock into an offer. Shares spiked 20%.

Decliners

Authorities are taking a deeper look at accounting at American International Group Inc.
AIG, +0.28%
-- going beyond transactions that AIG already has admitted were improper -- to examine actions the company may have taken to polish performance measures closely watched by insurance-industry investors, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Now regulators also are scouring deals to determine whether AIG improperly capped its underwriting "loss ratio," which reflects the percentage of each premium dollar that an insurer pays in claims, the people familiar with the matter say. Regulators also want to know if any transactions were used to artificially bolster AIG's surplus capital, the Journal reported. AIG shares fell 8%. See full story.

Best Buy Co.
BBY, -1.72%
reported fiscal fourth-quarter net income of $572 million, or $1.69 a share while earnings from continuing operations came to $1.55 a share, which matched analysts' average estimate, according to Thomson First Call. Revenue increased 9.2 percent to $9.23 billion, also matching analysts' view. But the nation's largest consumer electronics retailer said it sees fiscal first quarter earnings of 27 to 32 cents a share from continuing operations and fiscal 2006 earnings of $2.95 to $3.10 a share, including stock-based compensation expense of 5 cents a share in the quarter and 17 cents a share in the year. Analysts were expecting earnings of 38 cents a share for the quarter and $3.31 for the year, excluding the expense. The stock dropped 6%. See full story.

Central Freight Lines
CENF
said late Thursday it filed its 2004 Form 10-K, which included adjustments of previously reported results, with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The stock slid 16%. See full story.

Continental Airlines
CAL, +2.64%
said it will press ahead after its pilots and mechanics ratified new contracts while flight attendants, its biggest group of organized workers, rejected the deal. Shares lost 3%. See full story.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation expanded a probe of Delphi Corp.
DPH, +0.00%
by looking into accounting practices at the Troy, Mich., auto-parts producer, the Detroit News reported. The probe began last summer, the paper said. The accounting inquiry comes after Delphi said that it overstated its income because of bookkeeping errors, the paper reported. The FBI told the paper that it is coordinating the inquiry with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Justice and U.S. postal inspectors. Delphi shares lost 3%.

IGate Corp.
IGTE
said it was unable to file its 2004 Form 10-K by Friday's extended deadline as additional time was needed to complete the previously disclosed review of accounts receivable balances and the assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting. IGate said material weakness exists and it expects to disclose in the Form 10-K that its internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of Dec. 31, 2004 and that its auditor will issue a related adverse opinion. IGate concluded that its receivables were overstated by $800,000, and an adjustment was recorded to reflect this change, but it doesn't expect the impact of any adjustment to require the restatement of any of its previous financial statements. Due to the failure to file, iGate is no longer in Nasdaq listing compliance. The stock fell 2%.

Intraware Inc.
ITRA
reported it swung to a fourth-quarter loss of $374,000, or a penny a share. Last year, it posted a profit of $19,000, or breakeven. Revenue was $2.9 million vs. $3 million. It expects a first-quarter loss of a penny a share. For 2006, it expects revenue of $2.5 million to $2.8 million. The shares slid 18%.

National Instruments
NATI, -1.20%
warned that first-quarter earnings would be 12 cents a share, below prior projections of 16 to 20 cents a share, due primarily to reduced orders for large systems and instrument control sales. Revenue is expected to rise 4 percent over year-earlier levels to $130 million, which is below the average analyst estimate compiled by Thomson First Call of $136.6 million. The stock slumped 8%.

National R.V. Holdings
NVH, -1.85%
it delayed filing its Form 10-K, citing its "need to finalize its required review procedures and enable management to finalize its assessment of internal control over financial reporting as of Dec. 31, 2004." The Perris, Calif. motor homes manufacturer said it will restate its results for 2000, 2001 and 2002. It also will restate results for the third quarter of 2004 and revise its data for the recent fourth quarter. The company estimated the changes will reduce its third-quarter net income by 2 cents a share. The stock fell 9%.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc.
RRGBE
said it received a Nasdaq delisting notice because it did not file is 2004 Form 10-K in a timely manner. Its ticket will be changed to "RRGBE" on Friday. It said it previously said it would be late filing the form. The stock lost 2%.

Taser International
TASR
said it expects first-quarter revenue of $10 million, which is below the average analyst estimate compiled by Thomson First Call of $13.6 million. The stun gun maker attributes the expected sales shortfall to disruption in the flow of new business resulting from "significant adverse publicity" regarding the risks from the use of its products. The company said it has launched an education campaign to address these issues. The stock fell 13%.

J.P. Morgan cut Viisage Technology, Inc.
VISG
to underweight from neutral. The broker told clients it dropped its rating on the provider of security products for governments and businesses on the slower-than-expected deployment of a coordinated government ID system and international biometrics-enabled passport programs. Shares shed 12%.

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